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Guest opinion: Vote Yes on 2A

By Tim Plass and Suzanne Jones

Posted:
10/26/2012 01:00:00 AM MDT

Six years ago the citizens of Boulder made history: we became the first community in the nation to adopt a carbon tax on our energy use to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to address climate change. With these funds and lots of local engagement, Boulder developed and implemented a groundbreaking Climate Action Plan (CAP) to aggressively reduce GHG emissions through energy conservation, efficiency and education efforts. This November, Boulder residents have the opportunity to reaffirm this commitment by voting yes on ballot issue 2A to extend our CAP tax for another five years to continue the important and effective work we have started.

Since our carbon tax was first passed in 2006, we have lessened out strong upward trend in GHG emissions and developed several pivotal programs to achieve real reductions moving forward. For example, for Boulder property owners the city-created EnergySmart, which provides one-stop shopping for getting energy audits, expert advice on energy efficiency improvements, and access to rebates and financial incentives. To date, more than 1,300 businesses and almost 4,000 homes in Boulder have participated in EnergySmart, resulting in reduced energy use, increased comfort, and significant money savings.

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For rental properties, which represent half of Boulder housing stock, Boulder's award-winning SmartRegs program requires all rental housing to meet an energy efficiency standard by 2019. City staff engaged in a collaborative process with landlords to create incentives for early adoption. As a result, more than 1,795 properties have already achieved SmartRegs compliance.

For businesses, in addition to providing free EnergySmart assessments, the city established the "10 For Change" program to promote sustainability best practices and provide education and lesson-sharing opportunities. Through this innovative CAP program, over 100 Boulder businesses have committed to reducing energy use and waste by at least ten percent.

These successes are reflected in an independent analysis by Rocky Mountain Institute of Boulder's CAP tax-funded programs, which found that we used CAP tax dollars effectively to invest in programs that have "generated significant carbon savings at a reasonable cost." RMI's report also concluded that "Boulder has attained impressive energy savings and emission reductions, and is well positioned to achieve future emissions reduction targets" (BoulderEnergyFuture.com).

But we still have much work to do to reach our GHG goals. Looking ahead, we have the opportunity to build on our experience from the first five years -- to more fully reap the rewards from our early program investments, as well as pursue new initiatives. If voters approve the CAP Tax extension, the city -- with much input from citizen participation -- will pursue a new and enhanced approach that: 1) Ramps up programs for commercial properties, which represent 30 percent of our GHG emissions; 2) Enhances residential programs such as EnergySmart and SmartRegs; 3) Stimulates market innovation through a new community competition to generate energy-saving ideas from the private sector; and 4) Improves tracking, reporting, and evaluation of the effectiveness of our CAP programs and GHG reduction progress. If voters choose this course, together we can make meaningful and measurable progress in reducing our GHG emissions.

Currently, the average residential household pays $21/year to support CAP programs. A renewal of the tax simply means a continuation of these present rates, not higher taxes. By extending the CAP Tax, Boulder will remain a sustainable energy leader and continue to be a model for other communities to follow.

When Boulder joined cities across the U.S. in adopting the Kyoto climate goals for reducing GHG emissions ten years ago, we knew it would be a tough goal to reach. Despite significant and growing progress, we did not meet the Kyoto goals by 2012 as we intended, in large part because of the high carbon intensity of our electricity supply. This realization led to our community's decision to explore creating our own municipal electricity utility to increase renewable energy sources and more aggressively reduce GHG emissions. However, regardless of whether we decide to municipalize or not, reducing our energy consumption and increasing our energy efficiency is one of the most important efforts we can pursue: for the sake of our planet, our pocketbooks, and a more sustainable energy policy.

For all of these reasons, 2A is supported by the Boulder Chamber of Commerce, Sierra Club, PLAN-Boulder County, Clean Energy Action and RenewablesYES. We urge Boulder voters to join this diverse coalition in voting yes on ballot issue 2A.

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